The Gospel as the Power of God for Salvation (Rom 1:16)

Abstract

Jesus’ death is not itself good news but a tragic event resulting from his radical love of humanity and his bold challenge to power. Because Jesus challenged the wisdom of the world that privileged the strong and wealthy, he was crucified. But God vindicated him and acknowledged his work of grace. From the cross, we must see God’s grace and love. Jesus is good news because he proclaimed the good news of God (Mark 1:14), which is equivalent to “the good news of the kingdom of God” (Luke 4:43) or “the good news of the kingdom” (Matt 4:23). The gospel/good news is not knowledge about God or Jesus but the power of God that empowers the poor, downtrodden, and marginalized, so they may stay hopeful in God (Rom 1:16). As such, the gospel must deal with injustices, racism, oppression, poverty, and all related issues in society. Paul summarizes the law as the love of neighbor (Gal 5:14; Rom 13:8-10). All sorts of gospels that do not foster the well-being of the mass of people must be suspicious.